Throttle control for automotive vehicles



Filed March 9, 1950 L. A. MEDLAR ET AL THROTTLE CONTROL FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES & M Y 0 T. N M m VLA T N A T [E A MA. Y m mm E as Nov. 10, I953 Patented Nov. 10, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE THROTTLE CONTROL FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLES Application March 9, 1950, Serial No. 148,671

8 Claims.

This invention relates to a throttle control for automotive vehicles and particularly to a control for relieving fatigue during periods of extended operation at substantially constant speed or constant throttle adjustment.

In the past, passenger automobiles were generally provided not only with foot accelerators but with hand-operable throttle controls general- 1y mounted on the steering column. The foot accelerator normally occupied a position closing the air intake throttle to a position to effect idling of the engine while increased speed or power of operation was achieved by pressing downwardly on the accelerator pedal. The hand throttle, on the other hand, could override the control by the accelerator pedal and could be placed in any desired position to maintain a particular speed or power output by fixing the position of the throttle valve. In such cases it was possible for the driver to relieve the position of his foot on the pedal by setting the hand throttle in a desired position, particularly for long straight runs. This, however, was still not entirely satisfactory since in the case of a sudden emergency if the driver merely tended to stop by operation of the brake pedal the engine would continue to generate a large amount of power and the engine would not be disconnected from the wheels except by simultaneous operation of the clutch pedal. Since most drivers tended to decelerate by pressing the brake pedal first and by only pressing the clutch pedal after the drag of the slowed-down engine would substantially aid the deceleration of the car the instinctive movements by the operator would not, in this case, tend to produce as rapid deceleration as an emergency might require.

in modern passenger cars the hand-operated throttle control has been eliminated, particularly because the hand-operated throttle control was seldom used even for the purpose indicated above since most drivers dislike the situation presented of maintaining the engine in high speed operation under conditions when rapid deceleration was desired. The elimination of the hand throttle control, however, leaves only the foot pedal for control and to maintain speed or power it is accordingly necessary that the foot of the driver be continuously pressed on the pedal.

The general object of the present invention is to provide an arrangement whereby for long periods of driving at constant speed or constant power the operator is enabled to remove his foot from the accelerator pedal but nevertheless Without the disadvantage of having to jumble for a hand throttle control in order to slow down the engine when it is desired to decelerate. In the preferred form of the invention if the mechanism is set to maintain speed or power the instinctive operation of stepping on the brake pedal to decelerate will automatically eiiect a tripping operation so as to bring the engine immediately to idling condition. Alternatively, this same result may be secured by momentarily touching the accelerator pedal.

While the invention will be primarily directed to its use in passenger vehicles of the type not furnished with a hand throttle it will become evident that it is equally applicable to trucks in which additional hand throttle control may be present.

The foregoing general objects of the invention are attained by the means described in the application of James C. Boyle, Serial Number 79,777, filed March 5, 1949. However, in accordance with the disclosure of said application mechanical devices are used which must differ in form and construction depending upon the make of car or truck to which the invention is applied.

In accordance with the present invention there is provided an electromechanical device which is applicable generally to cars and trucks of all modern makes inasmuch as the sole mechanical connection involved is to the accelerator control rod which, though it may have various positions in difierent vehicles, is invariably present between the accelerator pedal and the throttle control valve. Except for a manually accessible switch the electrical connections are readily made to standard points of the electrical system of such Vehicle.

'The broader objects of the invention will be apparent from the foregoing. These and other objects particularly relating to details of construction and operation will become apparent from the following description read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing in which:

Figure 1 illustrates in section certain of the mechanical elements involved in accordance with the invention, certain conventional parts of the vehicle being diagrammatically illustrated;

Figure 2 is a section taken on the broken surface, the trace of which is indicated at 2-2 in Figure 1; and

Figure 3 is a wiring diagram showing the electrical connections provided in accordance with the invention.

Referring first particularly to Figure 1 there is indicated at 2 the conventional intake passage of a vehicle engine controlled by the throttle valve 4 which is pivoted at 6 and provided with an arm 8 having connections to the accelerator pedal 20. These connections may be, and generally are, indirect and are indicated as comprising alink lil airod 12, a link. 14, a bell crank l6, and a'link It; thelatter being pivoted to the accelerator pedal 20. If the connections are quite direct the links 10 and 14 may consist mere-.

ly of continuations of the intermediate rod [2. In other cases, however, theseilink'smayrbe con- 10 nected through suitable bell cranks to the rod 12. In any event, there will normally be in the accelerator connections an available-rod; such as. indicated at 12 which, as viewed in Figured, is

urged toward the left by a SpringAZL-acting di- 15 rectly or indirectly thereon. As is usual,1 such. spring will normally tend to raise the accelerator pedal and will tend to close the throttle to'an idling position determined by an adjustingscrew or other stop. Still referring to Figure 1, the throttle valves-r4 ,willbe. openedrby a-r-movement, of the -rod., l2 against. the. action loft spring 2 2 1by depression .of the accelerator .pedaLZIL Before ,proceedingrwithca; descriptions of the: new mechanical parts ire'ference ,may, be made j to .Figure .3 which shows certain. conventional 1-. electrical. elementsrof ,the vehicle These include o the usual battery 24.. (connected,-of lcourse, to; thecharging generator, not. illustrated), 4 the switch 26 arranged to be closed uponidepressionreo of .thebrake pedal of thevehicle, .and-the. stop light .28 which ,isilluminated upon v depression of the brake pedal and; closure of e-switch 26 .to. give i awarning :signal at the rear of thevehicle. a

The-new-mechanical elements =which are pro-v vided in accordance with the invention area-illustratediin'Figures land 12- and-.fiincludeaibox 30 provided With a :mounting plate 32 this-rbox .enclosing :a relay=and solenoid tosprotect the. same from-.dirtzor damage; Pivoted toethe-plate 32=at 34 there is a; solenoid -housings3-6 provided with a 1 lowerftubularrextension 38eprojecting through an opening. inthe bottom 'ofrthe '-box 3.0. Clockwisetmovement-iof the'housingh-36 about its pivot 34 is-limitedeby-an-adjustable-screw 39 threaded into the" box 30; Aeleaf ?spring-2 4 l :secured to- .the plate ,32 normally urges-the housing -36 clockwise into engagement with the screw 39.

'Theltubular extension 3Biis:externally;threaded to receive a pairzofi nuts- 42 flocated aboveacdishedspring-xiiscMwhich-surrounds the extension 38; Neartits lower end ,the-rextension 38-1-isprovidedwith 1 aqtransverse slot 46:;through :which there-V extends thenrod: I 2 .ItzWill :beyrunderstood Zthat the "plate .32 r is mounted iomthe engine: or; some. other portion of the vehicle which is fiXedSOi that the assembly:socfaridescrib'edzisima positiomto permit :the rodtzl-2etoipassifreelyg through: therslot wawhen the solenoid assemblyvis in :the" normal "position illustrated;

- Surrounding 1005613 717118.10W61ijf61'ld iof the ex:-' tensionsa-is'a;-sleeve-48:located'below the'spring disc-44,1 into whichsleeve 48 :thereis threaded-Iat 50 a transverse-pin 52 extending acrossvthe I rod l2. :Pin 52 projects qthrough :slots 53, and 55- in the extension-3-8 {so thatfthe sleeve 48 is freegforr vertical movementrelative to -the extension: 38. The sleeve ;48-:is1slotted:-at:54 :and :56::forithe:pas-, sage of the rod 12.

The solenoidplungeniB isvprovided with-a stem-0- whichais -formed :with anzelongated slot: 62 embracing the pin 52. This stemisz alsoproevided-:with a knife edge -61! :which,aasiwilliapp hereafter; is adapted ztoxriseito 'engagetand grip? the;rod:lii- A shoulderxGBz-zozr thetistemh 1 cated above it a spring 68 above which there surrounds the stem a contact plate 10 adapted to engage a pair of contacts 12 and 14 which are not illustrated in Figure l but which are shown in the diagram constitutingFigureB. The solenoid is also notsshownin Figure 1 but is-indicated at 16 in Figure 3.

7 Supported by an insulated screw carried by the housing 36 is a contact arm 18 provided with a contactipointiallyarranged to engage a similar contact 82 carried by the armature 83 of a conventional vrelay 84 which is secured to the plate -32lthroughe-elements. including the bracket 86.

Referringnoweparticularly to Figure 3 there is indicated at 88=,a*switch which may be the ignitionrswitchiof the'yehicle and which will be closed when the vehicle is operating. This serves to connect'th'e'binding post 89 of the upper end of the'solenoid with the ungrounded end of the battery 24. At 90 there is indicated a further switch which is grounded; at. one; side and- .at its other side :iseconnectedqto the binding post .9! electricallyconnected .to thelower end of .the solenoid 16-aswiewedliniFigure: 3. The switch .90 preferably takes the form of a push button which may bermountedin a convenient position on the dash:- of the vehicle .withineasy reach of the operator. -AS2W111- presently appear a. momentary closureof thisswitch serves to put the device-into operation.

The :operation of: the .deviceso -far described maysnow-bedetailed;

Under ordinary? conditions when the device is not in operationlthe variousmechanical parts vwill assume" the: positionsfindicatedain Figures 1 and- 2.- The-solenoid 1K6-wilLbe deenergized with the result that the-plungerzi8-willbe-in.loweredposition and its :stem will occupy a,position, in which the'upperendoftheslot BZImay'lengage the top Of-Ithe-piniZ which;:in--turn, rests-on thetop of the -rod 12; -the :rodl2; in turn; :resting I at the bottom iof-i-the slot' 48?. in =extension 38; Under these c0n-ditions the springs disc 44 isslightly spaced=from-rtheelowermostrnut 42-so as not to.

accelerator. pedal (and being drawn to the Y left; by spring 22:when7.the :pedal iis:re1eased;so asto give; rise td-normal control fofpth'e throttle valve; 4.

:Assumingnow-that-the@vehicle is 'running .and consequentlyrthatthe rswitch 88-1is closed; itmay 0 be;desired ibysthm operator 'to :locate -:the throttle valve-4 in some ifixede positiomto: maintainsubstantially constant the operation'ofzthevehicle. To achieve-such resultst-it is tonly necessary that the ioperatormressiupon ztheiaccelerator 'pedal to secure th'BrdBSiIBd-thlOttlB valve-setting and then momentarily closeithe switch 9 0 which as stated; maybe in va'th'e form::of=a:-push button switch mounted on the vehicle das'h. As-soon as the switch is closed the accelerator pedal may be released since =the 1 operations -'-Which will now be describ'ed occur substantiallyinstantaneously;

As will'be eevident from-Figure 3, so longasthe operator s foot is not 'on the -brake f the switch 26 will be open 'and' consequently the relay 84 will :be deenergized so that its armature '83 will be-in loweri position-in engagement with the 'contactiBBEcarried bythe arm 18; When the switch 96- ais closed' a :circuit is rc'ompleted 'through the solenoid; 16: which williimmedi'atelyraise the --plunger.:58;and cclosez'the circuittiromcthe lower end of the solenoid through contact 14, plate 10, contact 12, arm 18, contact 80, contact 82 and armature 83 to ground. As will be evident, even though switch 99 is immediately released and opened a holding circuit is provided to maintain the solenoid It energized.

The mechanical action resulting from energization of solenoid it may be considered with reference to Figures 1 and 2. The rise of the plunger 58 brings the knife edge 66 into engagement with the rod i2, and since this rod, as is usual, is loosely mounted, the rod will be raised, raising in turn the pin 52 and sleeve 48 so as to force the spring disc M tightly into engagement with the lower nut 52 thus producing a cushioned clamping action. It may be noted that the spring lit will yield under these circumstances so that the upward movement of the plunger 53 will not be inhibited by engagement of contacts E2 and 74 by the contact disc it. When now the accelerator pedal 28 is released, the biting action of the knife edge lid, which should be hardened, against the rod it will serve to hold the rod against the action of spring 22 since the clockwise movement of the solenoid housing is prevented by the stop screw Since, as previously described, the solenoid, 76 will remain energized, this clamping action will continue and consequently the throttle valve l will be maintained in the position to which it was adjusted.

Assume now that after a period of operation with the throttle valve so locked in. position the driver desires to resume normal control of the throttle. All that is necessary is a slight tap on the accelerator pedal. If the accelerator pedal i htly depressed below the position in which was previously locked, the rod l2 will be moved toward the right as indicated in Figure 1. Due to the clamping action of the knife edge it and the pin 52 such movement will result in a counterclockwise rocking of the solenoid housing against the action of spring l i. This will carry the contact arm '33 away from the armature 83 of relay and as a result the solenoid circuit will be opened by disengagement of contacts lit? and 82. This will result in immediate release of the rod with the result that normal operation of the throttle may be freely resumed. It may be noted that this will be the normally used operation for regaining pedal control of the throttle and is an operation which involves no more than the normal movement of the foot to depress the accelerator pedal.

Under emergency conditions the normal reaction. of the driver is, of course, to depress the brake pedal. Such depression of the brake pedal will close the switch 26 for the usual operation of energizing the stop light 22. From Figure 3 it will be evident that closure of switch 25 will also energize the relay 8 E lifting its armature 83 and efiecting opening of the solenoid circuit at the contacts lid and 82. Accordingly the accelerator rod will be released and snapped to idling position by the action of spring 22.

It will also be evident that the solenoid may be deenergized to release the rod 52 whenever the ignition switch as is opened. This, of course, insures that the solenoid is deenergized whenever the vehicle is parked. The use of the ignition switch to open the circuit may also be involved in an emergency if, for any reason, there should be a failure of closure of switch 26 when the brake pedal is depressed.

As will be evident from the foregoing the invention may be readily embodied in any make of car or truck through assembly with a convenient rod such as 12 of the elements carried by the plate 32 with provision of wiring into the usual electrical system of the vehicle with the sole addition of a push button switch to place the device in operation whenever desired.

There may be here noted an alternative possibility of rendering the device inoperative upon depression of the brake pedal. If there is associated with the brake pedal or its connections a switch located at the position indicated at 92 in Figure 3 which is normally closed but which is opened upon depression of the brake pedal it will be evident that the solenoid IE5 will be deenergized without the necessity for providing the relay 86. Under such circumstances the contact 8?. could be a fixed contact instead of being part of the relay armature. It is, however, preferred to provide an inexpensive relay such as indicated at 84 in order to avoid any complexity of wiring into the vehicle electrical system an unusual type of switch and making mechanical connections thereto.

It will be clear from the foregoing that numerous variations may be made in details of the mechanical and electrical arrangements described without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination in an automotive vehicle, an accelerator element, a spring urging said element in a direction to decrease speed, releasable means for holding said element in adjusted position against movement under the action of said spring, said means including an electromagnetic clamping device efiecting said holding when energised, and means for deenergizing said device, the electromagnetic clamping device being mounted for movement by movement of said element against the action of said spring when said device is energized, and the last mentioned means including contacts opened upon such movement of the clamping device.

2. In combination in an automotive vehicle, an accelerator element, a spring urging said ele ment in a direction to decrease speed, releasable means for holding said element in adjusted position against movement under the action of said spring, said means including an electromagnetic clamping device efiecting said holding when energized, and means for deenergizing said device, the electromagnetic clamping device being mounted for movement by movement of said element against the action of said spring when said device is energized, and the last mentioned means including contacts opened upon such movement of the clamping device, and additional switch means for eiTecting opening of said contacts.

3. In combination in an automotive vehicle, an accelerator element, a spring urging said element in a direction to decrease speed, releasable means for holding said element in adjusted position against movement under the action of said spring, said means including an electromagnetic clamping device effecting said holding when energized, and means for deenergizing said device, the electromagnetic clamping device being mounted for movement by movement of said element against the action of said spring when said device is energized, and the last mentioned means including contacts opened upon such movement of the clamping device, and additional switch and relay means for efiecting opening of said contacts.

4. In combination in an automotive vehicle, an accelerator element, a spring urging said element'ina direction to decrease speed; releasable means-for holdingsaidelement in adjusted positionragainst movement under the'action of said spring, said means including an electromagnetic clamping. device effecting said holding when energized, and means for deenergizing said device, the electromagnetic clamping device being mounted for movement by movement of said element against the action of said spring when saiddevice is energized, and the last mentioned means including contacts opened upon such movement of the clamping device, and additional switch means for deenergizing said device.

5. In combination in an automotive vehicle, an accelerator element, a spring urging said element ina direction to decrease speed, releasable means for holding said element in adjusted position against movement under the action of said spring, said means including an electromagnetic clamping deviceeffecting said holding when energized, and means for deenergizing said device, the electromagnetic clamping device being mounted for movement by movement of said element against the action of said spring when said device is energized, and the last mentioned means including contacts opened upon such movement of the clamping device, and additional switch and relay means for de energizing said device.

6. In combination in an automotive vehicle, an accelerator element, a spring urging said element in a direction to decrease speed, releasablesmeans for holdingsaid element .in adjusted position-against movement under the action of said-spring, said means including an electromagnetic clamping device effecting said holding when energized, and means for deenergizing said device, the electromagnetic clamping device beingpivotally mounted for movement by'movement of said-elementagainst the action of said spring, when said device is energized, and the last mentioned means includingcontacts opened upon such movement of the 'clamping device.

7.- In combination in an automotive vehicle, an accelerator element, a spring urgingsaidelement in a direction to decrease speed, releasable means for holding said element inadjusted position against movement under-the action of said spring; said means including, an electromagneticclamping. device: effecting said. holding. when. energized, means formomentarily energizingsaid device, said- 1 device including holding contacts maintaining it energized; when momentarily energized by the last mentionedrmeans, and

means for deenergizing' said device, theielectromagnetic clamping device being mounted for movement by movement of said element against the action of said spring when saiddevice is energized, and the last mentioned. means in-v cluding contacts opened-upon such movement of the clamping device.

8. In combination in an automotive vehicle, an accelerator element, a spring urgingsaid ele ment in a direction to'decr-easespeed; releasable means for holding said element in adjusted position against movement under the action-'01 said spring, said means including 'an electromagnetic clamping device effecting said holding whenv energized, means for momentarily energizing said device,- said. device including holding contacts' maintaining it energized when-momentarilyenergized by the-:last mentioned-.meansand means. for deenergizing saiddevice, the electromagnetic clamping device being mounted for. movementby movement .of said element against the action a of said spring when said device is energized, and a the last mentioned means including; contacts opened upon such movement ofithe-clamping device, and additional switch means "for reflecting opening of said contacts.

LEWIS A. GERARD A.-.. NAAB.

References Cited in the :file "of this patent UNITED' STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,159,772 Schroedter May 23, 1939" 2,270,002 Glick Jan. 13,- 1942 2,423,006 Chambers June 24,1947 2,467,485 Krieg -Apr. 19, 1949 2,487,606 Smith Novr 8, 1949 2,509,358 Krieg, May-30,1950 2,554,619 Goik May;'29,'195l 

